Bishop Earl Boyea leads hundreds of people in prayer at the start of a rally against proposed contraception insurance coverage

Steve Carmody/Michigan Radio

Several hundred people gathered at the state capitol today to protest the Obama Administration’s push to make all employer-provided health care plans carry contraception coverage. Similar rallies took place in Detroit, Flint, Ann Arbor and other Michigan cities.

The Catholic Church is a main opponent of the contraception mandate. Church leaders held rallies across the country today.

Speaking on the steps of the state capitol, Lansing Bishop Earl Boyea said the constitutional protection of Freedom of Religion extends beyond the freedom to worship, but also to freedom to practice religious belief in everyday life.

“That is why we have Freedom of Religion. So that we can live a life worthy of God. Each according to his or her own conscience. No government can take that away,” Bishop Boyea told the crowd.

The Obama administration proposed a compromise that would have insurance companies provide contraception coverage without specific employer support.

But last month, 43 Catholic organizations filed a lawsuit to strike down the mandate entirely.